Ryder Hesjedal of Victoria and Catharine Pendrel of Kamloops, BC, were voted the top riders in the 16th annual Canadian Cyclist of the Year Awards, Canada's oldest and most prestigious People's Choice awards. Over an eight day period, thousands of ballots were submitted through CanadianCyclist.com to choose the top riders for 2012.

In the Female Canadian Cyclist of the Year competition, Pendrel, with three Mountain Bike World Cup wins and the overall World Cup title, finished ahead of Olympic road racer Clara Hughes, of Winnipeg, who was fifth in the Individual Time Trial at the London Games. The Paralympic tandem team of Robbi Weldon (Thunder Bay, Ontario) and Lyne Bessette (Knowlton, Quebec) were third. Pendrel, who previously won the Canadian Cyclist Award in 2009 and 2011, took 43.9% of first place votes cast, to Hughes' 30.8%.

Catharine Pendrel, from her home, stated "Wow, I am honoured. 2012 had its ups and downs, but this is a pleasant reminder of how successful the season was as a whole. Thanks everyone for your votes and cheers!"

In the Male Canadian Cyclist of the Year balloting, road professional Ryder Hesjedal of Victoria, the winner in 2009 and 2010, finished well ahead of second place Geoff Kabush of Victoria. Road professional Hugo Houle of Sainte-Perpétue, Quebec, who finished fourth at the Road World Championships, was third. Hesjedal, who became the first Canadian to ever win a Grand Tour of cycling with his victory in the Giro d'Italia, took 63% of first place votes. Kabush, who finished 8th in the Olympic Mountain Bike race, the highest finish ever for a Canadian man, took 10% of first place votes.

Hesjedal, when contacted at his training base in Maui, Hawaii, commented, "To win the Giro and represent my country at the Olympics makes this a special year. Thanks to everyone for all the support throughout the years and your vote once again in a very tough competition!"

In the Individual Performance balloting for the top three results of 2012, Hesjedal's sixth place in the final stage of the Giro to clinch overall victory was voted the top performance of the year, followed by the Olympic Bronze medal performance of the women's team pursuit squad. The Team Pursuit squad consisted of Gillian Carleton (Victoria), Jasmin Glaesser (Coquitlam, BC) and Tara Whitten (Edmonton). The Paralympic gold medal won by Weldon and Bessette took the third title.

Canadian Cyclist will announce the Best Bike shops in Canada voting, as well as the Roger Sumner Award for Best Newcomer, shortly.